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COLLAPSE PHENOMENA: RESEARCH

FENOMENOS DE COLAPSO: ESTUDIO

A survey is made of the processes that have been used for measuring the amount of collapse suffered by soils. Among the laboratory tests used, mention is made of the double oedometric test and the simplifications of this introduced subsequently. This article does not mention the suction oedometric test used to investigate the collapse rate of the sands in the sub-soil of Madrid. The most common criteria for determining susceptibility to collapse are also discussed in detail: expressions based on the void ratio, on the moisture content in connection with the atterberg limits, the relation between density and the atterberg limits, between the density and the moisture, and on the external load to which the soil is subjected. Finally, mention is made of the use of chemical tests to determine the extent of the collapse. The article closes with a review of the field tests used and the mathematical models that have arisen to explain the values found both in the laboratory and in the field. /TRRL/